Libation

Pegasi were not buried. To put them six feet in the ground was heretical to their very nature.

Instead — for those who follow the ancient Pegasi traditions, at least — Pegasi become one with their own domain upon their death. They are cremated, and afterward, their ashes are released high, high in the sky, left to join with the air like they did in life with every beat of their wings.

Celestia couldn't quite wrap her head around how many pegasi had melded with the sky since Commander Hurricane had thousands of years ago, shortly after the only battle he'd ever lost. It was the same sky, she knew, but he wasn't here anymore — not really. The last of Commander Hurricane had long been recycled into something else entirely, but she couldn't help but look at every little snowflake falling all around her and think of them as him.

For most months of the year, Cloudsdale would be at this very spot, hanging above the sky as a reminder of what he built. It wasn't here now, though — Cloudsdale was on the move, tasked to bring winter to every city in Equestria before returning just in time for the holidays. It was an idea he created at the head of the weather brigade many years ago, and while the exact means of delivery had certainly changed in hundreds of years, everything else — the route it traveled and the logistics from pegasi to pegasi — remained nearly the same. One with the snow in more ways than one.

Celestia and Luna were perched on a cloud where the city should have been. It was cold, but the sky was empty, waiting to be conquered by a slew of coursing feathers — just as Hurricane would have preferred.

He certainly lived up to his name. And so Celestia and Luna sat perched, both with glasses of the only thing in the world that could ever really calm him down.

Pegasi Red, much like Hurricane himself, was not a gentle wine. It burned the back of your throat as it coursed through your body, but it was all the same delectable — that was probably why Hurricane had loved it so much, she wagered. Celestia had always loved the taste of it, and when she was (much) younger, she had always been fascinated by the way the Pegasi would grow their grapes in the ground and then finish the process in the clouds. Whatever it was, it didn't taste like any other wine, bursting with a fruity flavor while biting back all the same.

Celestia loved Pegasi Red. But while her sister had certainly changed since her return, Celestia knew that one thing certainly hadn't.

"Disgusting," Luna spat, cringing as she got it down. "If only the Pegasi could wrap up wine like they wrap up winter. Goes down about as pleasant as Hurricane's spear."

"I didn't know you two were that close," Celestia quipped, taking another sip.

She didn't get to savor it for long. She felt a hard shove from her left, which caused all of her wine to fly out of her cup and down to the earth below, far earlier than the sisters had intended to do it purposefully. The last bit of it joined the rest when Celestia doubled over, unable to stave off a furious bit of laughter, and when she looked up at her sister, Luna's poor effort to hide the corners of her mouth turning upward made her only laugh harder.

It felt like forever. Celestia could only faintly recall the old holidays with her and Luna thousands of years ago, but she imagined it was something like this. No pageantry. No formality. No speeches or state affairs. Just the two of them.

After a spell, Luna silently floated her glass over to Celestia in penance. She took the swig she'd been robbed of, reveling in its thorns, before idly staring out into the vast, empty sky.

"I was young and brash, once. I still was, after... after you'd gone. I was one of the two most powerful beings in the world, and then, suddenly, it was just me. Hearth's Warming had just begun to formulate around that time, once the tribes had been united for long enough, and I hated it. It was a day about spending time with friends, family and lovers — all things I did not have. I was surrounded by nobles and bureaucrats who showered me with gifts not because they really knew me or even cared about me, but because they felt like they had to."

Another swig. It was strong, and Celestia began to feel the warmth of the drink embrace her now, after only two glasses — another favorite quality of hers. With a deep breath, she continued.

"But one day — I don't remember what day, or when — I saw the snow. It may have been before Hearth's Warming, or Hearth's Warming Eve, or Hearth's Warming Day, or even after, but I thought about Hurricane. He always made it his duty to ensure that winter went smoothly. His weather brigade was his pride and joy."

"Even on his deathbed," Luna replied. She gestured her hoof out, without looking at Celesta. With a coy grin, she floated the cup back to Luna, who took another swig of the wine herself. Celestia wasn't entirely sure what she was expecting, but Luna's face lapsed back into a scrunch like she'd rehearsed it. "Stricken with consumption, and still finding something to yell at Pansy about. That poor mare."

"Yes, I... cannot say he was perfect," Celestia replied. "And yet he demanded it from his Pegasi. But on that day, I thought... I thought that it must have made him happy. To have everypony experience a white Hearth's Warming by the fireplace, with the snow gently falling down at their windows. It must have meant a lot to him. And he was harsh, yes, and I cannot excuse how he drove those under him at times, but Pansy and the others... I think it meant a lot to them, too. And suddenly, on that day, making all those nobles and bureaucrats happy and attending those plays and leading those ceremonies suddenly meant a lot to me."

Luna floated the cup back to her. There was only a bit left, but it was just enough.

"Thank you for this weather, Hurricane," Luna said as Celestia held her cup high with her magic. It was a serious moment, but Luna was once again trying to to laugh at the sight of a single goblet held high. "This Hearth's Warming Eve would not be the same without it. And thank you, too, to your weather brigade, who make these days special."

After one final stare into the dark red swirls, Celestia poured the last of it out in front of her, to take the long, long, long way down to the surface in little droplets. But while their toast was finished, Celestia wasn't done.

"You're lucky you didn't see Rainbow Dash's fiasco during winter season a few years ago," Celestia said to the Commander, wherever he was. "You'd have had her executed."

"Or worse," Luna replied. "Sentenced to drink a bottle of your favorite wine."

For the second time that day, Celestia burst into fits. Luna joined in willingly, this time, and the two let it ride once again, doubled over on their cloud for a moment in time as tiny little snowflakes floated all around them.

As that moment died, the two sisters rose to their hooves atop their little cloud. Celestia stretched her wings, ready to head to their next stop, but as she did so, she was surprised to feel Luna's own wing wrap around her in an embrace.

"Hurricane was one of the strongest ponies I've ever met. And I think he'd be proud of you," Luna said. "Now you have friends and family to share this wonderful holiday with under his snow, and I could not be happier myself."

Celestia felt a wetness around her eyes she knew was not the remnants of a snowflake, but they dried up rather quickly when Luna finished her thought.

"You still need to work on the 'lovers' part you mentioned, though," Luna told her. "The way you speak, it sounds like it's been on your mind lately."

It was the older sister's turn to shove. And when she did, it was far less merciful than Luna had been.